Improved bottom foe ice-boxes if eefeigeeatoes



, @eine gisten atrnt @filing LEVI H. MACE, 0F WESTGHESTER, AND FREDERICK S. GWYER, OF NEWY YORK, N. Y.

.Letters .Pa-tent No. 75,175, dated .Merch 3, 1868.

turnover) BOTTOM ron Ion-Boxes In carelessness.

Wes*

l TO ALL WHOM IT MAY CON CERN: l

Beit known Y'that we, LEVI H. MACE, of Westchester, in Vthe countyof Westchester, State of'Netv York, and FREDERICK S. Gwynn, of thc cityof New York, in the State of' New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvemcnts'iuIce-BottomsA or Shelves-in Refrigerators;` and we do' herebyv declare that the following is a full and exact description thereof. i Our invention is of sheet metal, which is lightcr,and is a better conductor of caloric than the .thick castiron bottoms sometimes employed. It is corrugated in peculiar manner, the corrugations radiating in all directions fromfthe hole which drains the bottom. I vt has great strength for the weight of the material. It drains itself perfectly, and is easily cleaned. Corrugated sheet-metal bottoms have been before employed in refrigerators, but we are not aware that the corrugations have been other than parallel, and they have therefore contributed to the strength of the bottom only in one direction. In order to obtain suiicient strength in theother direction, it has been necessary to solder in cross-pieces, whichlhave not only increased the amount of material and the labor employed, ybut have also increased the diiculty of keeping the bottom perfectly clean. Ourradially-corrugated bottom is made, by preference, of galvanized sheet ironfbut common iron, copper, brass, bronze, thick tinned iron, or other sheet metal, may be employed, if preferred,

Wewill proceed to describe what we consider the best means for carrying out our invention, and will afterwards designate the points which we believe to be new.

A The accompanying drawings form a part of this specification. l Figure 1 is a. central vertical section through our improved bottom, and showing, also, the adjacent parte of the refrigerator.

Figure 2 is a'plan view of the bottom; and Figure 3 is a section on the line S S in g. 2. Similar letters of reference indicate like parts in all the gures. n -A '.A, ne., is the-turnedup rim or edge ofthe bottom. B is the dat portion, in which a hole is punched by driving the punch from-above downward,'thusmuking a ila-ring hole, adapted to receive the pipe C; and to form ajunction, which shall be smooth and complete, with solder oriotherwise. From the plane space B, corrugations D E extend radially in all directions to the rim A. The parts D indicate the ridges, or the elevated parts of the corrugations, and the parts E represent the depressions, or the channels between the ridges D. n i

We can, in ordinary cases` and small sizes, vform the entire l bottom -of one piece of metal, bystriking it between suitably-formed dies. The art of .striking metal into forme by dies is Well understood, and We do not consider it necessary to explain further than to say -that the dies are accurately formed-of cast iron, one being carved accurately into theforrn desired, and a casting taken therefrom, and' the other being formed an exact counterpart thereto, by-casting-it thereon, after .washing the previously-cast surface with a thin coating of clayi The entire pan orbottom may be formed, in the absence of suoli dies, by skillful hammering, but the operation is laborious and the result is less perfect. When'the pan is galvanized, We galvanize it, by preference, after the shape is entirely completed, and after the .hole is punched to receive thedrai'npipe. i To makcthe bottom of the pan' aboutjifteen by twelve inches, andthe depth'of the pan or bottom about one and a. quarter inch, we employ iron about No. Q4. We, have represented the plane space B as close to one side of the pan. This'arran'gcment is preferable, in many instances, because it brings the drain-pipe near the wall of the refrigerator below, and, in this case, we'niake the rim adjacent to the plane surface deeper `than the other sides. In short,l the plane space B is the lowest pointin-'the bottom, and when it comes close to theside of the pan, it obviously' involves the necessity for making a deeper rim on'that side; but Wexcan, if preferred, make the plane space B, and, consequently, the connection for :the 'pipe C, at any other point in the bottom. It is frequently preferred to make it in the centre ofthe bottom.. In eithcr'position', the corrugations D E radiat'e therefrom in all directions. Itis not absolutely essential that the corrugations be equal in Width or depth, cach tothe other, butwe esteem it preferable to so form them` l I i We have represented in the gurcs (fig. 1) the upright form of refrigerator, with' the ice-bottom above the provisions or articles tdlbe prcscrved.- We propose Ato apply our improved bottom not only in this form of refrigerator, but in all other forms,- and especially in the form of refrigerator known as the chest-refrigerator.

Our drawing shows the edge of the bottom, standing at a littledistance off from the zinc lining of the refrigerator. We can use it successfully in this manner, but we prefer, generally, to hold it firmly to the zinc lining. It may be soldered on all sides, or only on two sides, or one, as preferred. It may beI partially sun ported on a board below, in the usual manner, if preferred.

A portion of the advantages-due to our invention may be secured by making the corrugations not directly straight, but more or less wary or serpentine as they lead away from the `drain-hole. n other words, the grooves and ridges need not be straight, but may be crocled. We esteem it essential, however, that they shall be in substance radial, that is, leading the water produced by the melting of the ice directly to the hole. We prefer thestraight corrugations.

One advantage due to ourinvention over the plain parallel corrugations, which has been adverted to above, is the keeping the ice in position. Plain corrugations allow the ice to slide down, if, as usual, the bottom is inclined, and, in many instances, the ice so sliding gets directly over-th`ey drain-hole and stops it Sometimes a small piece sinks into the drain-tube and chokes it for a considerable time. But our radialclrannels and ridges, whether the same bestraight or crooked, er even if there be but one continuons corrugation, waved back and forward over the whole surface, gradually growing lower as it approaches the drain-hole, will drain' the' water eli'ectuully, allow of thorough and easy cleaning, dto., as above.. detailed, and will also, by impressing its form into the piece of ice as it melts, prevent it from sliding acrossthe bottom in any direction. Bottles or' ether articles maybe placed wedgewise between it and the walls, on either side, without danger of their displacing` the ice by moving it laterally after the bottom has become shaped.

Having now fully described our invention, what we claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is as follows: i

We claim the radially-corrugated sheet-metal bottom, formed and adapted for use in refrigerators, substnn tially as and with the advantages herein specified.

L. H. MACE,

F. S. GWYER Witnesses:

THOMAS D. STETsoN, W. C. Dm'. 

